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The Torah is the holy book of the Jews. It is part of the Tenak and has five books, this is known as the Pentateuh.
The Torah is seen, by practising Jews, as a sacred possession and for this reason the real Torah is kept and dressed in the Synagogue, it is used by only the readers and is not even allowed to be touched with their hands. The book is

hands. The book is highly respected.

The Torah contains the 613 Mitzvah, (commandments.) And within these are the 10 sayings. Practising Jews study the Torah as it contains history of the Jews and tradition including Exodus, Moses and Race. Jews celebrate the Torah (rejoice in the law,) at the Simchat Festival.

The Torah is very important to practising Jews as it is a hallowed gift that gives them guidance and contains all of their beliefs.

The Torah directs the lives of the Jews’ in many ways:

* Morality

* Relationships

* Hospitality

* Charity

* Marriage

* Purity.

Therefore, the Torah is a very valuable possession and is truly honoured.

The Torah also represents the covenant made between a Jew and God, it’s their side of the deal. To a Jew, the Torah is their chance to show they ‘appreciate’ their redemption by keeping to the commandments. The Torah, consequently, is the centre of their lives.

How Might Following the Teachings of the Torah Affect Daily Lives of Devout Jew?

The Torah teaches Jews to follow 613 Mitzvah, (commandments,) and therefore by sticking to these rules they could have to avoid certain activities.

For example, one of the 10 sayings is to ‘not create/worship idols,’ as a result a practising Jew wishing to keep to the teachings of the Torah would not be able to have a job in the marketing/advertising industry.

Another example of the Torah’s teachings affecting a devout Jew’s life could be excluding themselves from a friend/neighbours dinner party as they cannot eat certain foods and are unable to mix their taught food groups.

In addition, a Jew may be required to give up certain activities or social gatherings to make time for worship/prayer. For example, ‘the Sabbath day should be kept holy,’ and so a Jew would not be able to attend a party on this day if he/she wished to follow the teachings of the Torah.

Another example would be a Jewish child maybe not finding time for homework if he/she has to worship or do Jewish studies, especially if they were preparing for Shabbat/Bar Mitzvah.

Many of the Torah’s teachings could cause inconvenience for a devout Jew, but if their faith is truly important to them, they would be able to work round the dilemmas, putting their religion first.

The Torah Commandments Should Be Adapted to Fit in With Modern Life. Give Reasons For & Against.

Some people would agree with the above statement, such as a teenage Jew who only practices his religion because his parents want him to, or a boyfriend/girlfriend of a Jew who finds it difficult to understand their partners faith.

They could argue that the Torah is thousands of years old and if God could re-write it he would do so to fit in with this day and age. However, a traditional Jew would come back to this by saying that it is strict tradition and the religion still lasts up to today, so does the Torah commandments.

Another argument for the statement could be that the commandments are old fashioned. But an Orthodox Jew would disagree and say that the 10 sayings still apply to life today and are just morals that every human should follow to make the world a better place, I agree with this.

I think that The Torah’s commandments wouldn’t really be hard to follow with modern day life for a true, honouring Jew who is determined to keep to it’s teachings, although to others it may be hard to see it is their religion and the most important thing, (an arguable statement,) in their lives’.